Posted on 17 June 2014

Robby Stein and Sandra Schroeder congratulate one another after being elected to the Sag Harbor Village Board of Trustees on Tuesday night. Michael Heller photo

By Stephen J. Kotz

Incumbent Robby Stein was the top vote getter on Tuesday to win reelection to the Sag Harbor Village Board of Trustees with a total of 308 votes.

Sandra Schroeder, a former village administrator who last year challenged Brian Gilbride for mayor, came in second place with 270 votes.

John Shaka, a member of the group Save Sag Harbor, who has become a familiar sight at the Municipal Building, where he has been an advocate for a traffic calming project, missed out on a seat, receiving a total of 219 votes. Former Trustee Bruce Stafford received 124 votes.

In North Haven, Mayor Jeff Sander, incumbent Trustees Dianne Skilbred and James Davis, and first-time candidate Tommy John Schiavoni, who all ran unopposed, were reelected.

“I’m just so thrilled,” Ms. Schroeder said on Wednesday morning about her election. “I’m really a happy camper about that today.”

The newly elected trustee said she looked forward to getting to work, and said she did not expect to have any problems working with her fellow board members.

“I can work with anyone,” she said, adding that people run for office because they have a sincere desire to make the village a better place to live. “It’s not a personal thing, it’s issues,” she said. “You don’t have to agree on everything to get along.”

Mr. Stein said he was pleased to be the top vote-getter. “I feel I can continue the work I’ve started,” he said. “I look forward to working with Sandra on the board.”

“I’m really proud of the campaign we ran,” said Mr. Shaka. “We ran on the issues and got the news out.”

Although he said he was disappointed that he failed to win, Mr. Shaka said, “The good news is that Sag Harbor has two really good people going in who will take care of the business of the village.”

It took about an hour for the results to be announced as election workers first cross-checked 43 absentee ballots against voter registration rolls and counted them individually before announcing the results from voting machines.

A crowd of about 40 people who had gathered at the Sag Harbor Firehouse on Brick Kiln Road waited quietly for the results.

“I had a wonderful life last week and I will again next week,” said Ms. Schroeder as she waited. “I’m really hoping to be elected, but if not, I’m not going away.”

When it became clear she would be one of two winners, a small group of supporters who had gathered around her cheered. Mr. Shaka, a first-time candidate for village office, offered his congratulations to the winners. Mr. Stafford left shortly after the results were announced, offering a “night, night” to those nearby.

A total of 511 votes were cast. Four write-in votes were cast, with two for Scott Smith and one each for Mary Anne Miller and Margaret Bromberg.

North Haven Village Clerk Georgia Welch said a total of 97 ballots were cast, 92 by machine and five absentee ballots.